Kingdom Hero Academy
by Nstorm
Summary: Cloud has been searching for someone for quite some time to the point where he's almost tired of it. So naturally, when he gets a letter from the unknown Kingdom Hero Academy- a school for soon-to-be heroes, he's anything but enthusiastic. Especially when he finds out that he's stuck teaching orphans for a year. Join Cloud as he tries his best to try to at least survive. T for safe
1. Chapter 1

Cloud didn't know how long he had been searching. Seconds became minutes, minutes became hours then hours became days, days into weeks, weeks soon became months and months became years. Every world that he passed became a blurb of a memory that he could barely recall while every ally he met became a speck amidst a pile of sand. Every enemy left an encounter that made him loathe every step he took; another challenger appeared in front of him every single time his former foes fell. He still had some ancient scars that told the trials, and annoyances, of his many battles. Yet he still treaded on, not because he enjoyed walking through worlds with a chance of death added in, but because he needed to find someone. He didn't know who they were, what their name was or why they were important to him. There was a vague memory, weathered by time to the point where it was unrecognizable like ancient ruins, and it brought a very strange feeling to him. It felt a lot like regret, something he should have done but didn't and it made him feel like a failure.

No matter how hard he tried to remember what it was that he even should have done, he couldn't and like the feeling it ate at his soul. He supposed that was the effect of not knowing the answers to a distant memory and it was this feeling that drove him to find answers. Although, he wasn't that ambitious to do many things, so why did he even care? There was a chance that he was just wasting his time chasing for answers for something that wasn't even there, so why? Why did he care?

It didn't really matter much like the surreal quietness of the world he came to walk through. Called Twilight Town for the endless sunset that painted the sky, it was one of the largest worlds Cloud ever came to. There were a million houses that surrounded the town like an army ready to seize a castle and he spent the few hours that he was in here getting lost. He had absolutely no idea where he was going and he was getting tired of walking around with his Buster Sword-a large great sword that he had to swing with both hands-in his right hand. He was covered from head to toe in dirt and his own dried blood and his high collared, sleeveless indigo shirt had three large claw marks across where his stomach was. It showed off an equally large scratch mark that had closed up and was covered in a green liquid. The black pants he wore were teared at multiple places and his black boots were covered in the quicksand-like mud he accidently walked in. His normally blonde, spiky hair sat on his head in chaotic strands like the hair on a cat that was just rubbed by a towel. Other than the bags under his blue eyes, there was nothing out of the ordinary for his hygiene and that was excluding the musk that clouded his very being.

"Kupo~!" exclaimed A Distant Voice.

He stopped walking immediately and turned toward the direction of the voice: A moogle, a strange white-furred, flying being with a pom-pom antenna sticking out of it's his head and a mailbag at its side. The Moogle took a letter out of its bag as it flew over to him.

"Delivery for Cloud Strife!" It chimed, holding out the letter." From The Kingdom Hero Academy!"

 _Hero Academy?_ Cloud thought, taking the letter and examining it.

The Moogle nodded and flew off, leaving Cloud to gaze at the letter as he turned it in his hand like he was cross-examining a bomb to see if it was indeed a bomb. It had a golden seal with a keyhole on it and in fancy letters had the words, To Cloud Strife, on it. He shrugged as if dispelling any evil it might contain before opening it; then flinched when confetti shot out of it bathing the area around him in multi-colored streamers. He supposed that was one way to make it special. The parchment inside was also golden and covered in glittered that covered his hands and smelled a lot like roses. It read:

 _Dear Mister Cloud Strife,_

 _Due to events that were out of my control, you have been selected as our newest and only teacher at The Kingdom Hero Academy. Now, since you are no doubt unaware of our academy, allow me-_

 _Not interested_ , Cloud thought, throwing the letter over his shoulders. _I have better things to do with my time….Huh that may be the fastest I've ever been uninterested in a letter._

Before he could do anything else, he was bathed in a bright light and transported through what felt like a time space rift faster than he could think. He slammed onto a wooden chair, shaking back and forth before coming to a complete stop, in front of a desk cluttered with papers. Standing in front of the desk, was a man wearing a red and gold lined haori( it was a Japanese kimono-like jacket that Cloud had the pleasure of wearing when he was shopping) with a hood along with a slightly shorter than normal, light colored hakama. A hakama is like trousers, shorts but some can easily mistake it for a dress-for some odd reason. Underneath his haori, he wore a navy blue shirt with a large white X pattern on the front. Over his right eye and right cheek were jagged scars that appeared to be from some distant battle or some freakish accident. There was a calm and collective aura that surrounded him, which kind of made him dangerous. He shook his head in disappointment.

"You act as if you have a choice in the matter," The Man sighed, reflectively.

"Who are you and where am I?" demanded Cloud, looking around the room and reaching for his sword that wasn't there." And where's my-"

"Relax; you are in no danger," assured The Man, holding his hands in front of him defensively." Yet anyway, as long as you don't do anything rash."

Without his sword, Cloud was as harmless as a headless murderer. He sat back in his seat, shuffling his feet while flashing an annoyed look at The Man.

"Anyway, my name is Eraqus, and I am the headmaster of The Kingdom Hero Academy," translated The Man, rubbing his hands." And you are in the principal's office for bad behavior."

He took a minute to gaze around the room with gold colored wallpaper and at least ten plagues holding what appeared to be keyblades-weapons that were shaped like an oversize key. There was a coat hanger in the corner behind Eraqus.

"Some office," remarked Cloud, uninterested.

"I just had it redone since-"

"Why am I here?"

Eraqus looked at him cross." If you read the letter, maybe you would know."

"Sounded boring."

"The confetti wasn't to your liking?"

Cloud glared at Eraqus, as if to stop the already forming joke in The Headmaster's mind. Eraqus cleared his throat.

"Anyway, since you are no doubt unaware of our academy, allow me to explain its history."

"Is this going to take long because I sort of have somewhere to be?"

"It'll be brief. I realized that in order to combat the ever-growing darkness, there must be a place to raise warriors that have grown in it. Otherwise, there's no one to fight it. So I created The Kingdom Hero Academy to attract said warriors. Unfortunately, we have only about six students since-"

"The others didn't bite?"

Eraqus nodded slowly." Yes-" He flashed a very hopeful smile." The confetti wasn't to their liking."

Cloud gave him a look that read, _Seriously?,_ causing the smile to fade from the other's lips.

"As such, we have-well, had now I suppose-one full-time teacher to teach the kids. They were the only ones we could find. Needless to say-"

"They quit?"

"I would say 'left and never came back' but that works as well."

"So, you mean to tell me that I'm the replacement for a school that's extremely unknown and seems pretty dull?"

"That's a little harsh, but yes, you are. You were-"

"Not interested."

Cloud quickly got up and walked out the door, causing Eraqus to shake his head and chuckle softly to himself.

"He truly has no clue what he just did, doesn't he?" Eraqus remarked to no one in particular, taking his seat on his black, leather chair." No matter. That little treat my students installed should be working in about twenty seconds. And I don't even have to search for another one!"

Cloud walked through the door, grimacing in surprise when he realized he was back in the office.

"Welcome back, Cloud. I take it you've had a lovely stroll?"

"We're not on a first name basis," spat Cloud, stepping back out and slamming the door.

Eraqus propped his feet on his desk, leaning back in his extremely comfortable chair. The door opened and Cloud came back in, this time a little annoyed.

"The corridors are to your liking?"

"Too long."

A few minutes after he had closed the door, he was back.

"Had enough?"

Door closed, Cloud came back only this time he was stiff and tall.

"Okay, what gives? Why do I come back here every time I leave?"

Eraqus gave a comfy smirk. "Oh, that's just the return spell one of my students made-don't pay it any mind. It's just a security precaution for all the workers. See, since my last teacher had the grace of leaving and never returning, I had to make sure that nothing befell my future ones. So we installed that spell so that if they ever venture off into a cruel, dark world they would be brought back here safe and sound."

"But I'm not-"

"It's in the letter you received; once opened, the spell takes effect. You don't have the right to object since you opened a letter from a place you've never even heard of. I mean, who does that? For all you know, it could have been a death charm with its sender out in an unreachable place."

Much as Cloud hated to admit it, he had him there.

"Look, I know that you obviously have something better to do than watch over a bunch of kids you've never even seen, but I have to have somebody do it. All of them are orphans whose worlds have succumbed to darkness. Besides myself, they have nobody to take care of them, no nobody to love them and nobody to adopt them. I tried-they refuse to leave my care and they're too much for most of the people that wanted to adopt them. So, in order to give them some normality, I turned the orphanage into a place where they can pursue fairly normal lives. What I'm trying to say, is that you are our last hope for this to work."

Cloud though about it for a minute. Why should he teach a bunch of orphans that he didn't even know anyway? He had one thing on his mind.

"Not inter-"

"You don't have to care about them." Eraqus stood to his feet, a look of pure desperation on his face." I just need-"

"I don't have time to babysit."

"From our reports, it seems you have a lot of it. Besides, you won't be able to leave without that spell still on you. It takes a whole year for it to wear off-so I think."

"So I'm stuck here?"

"In this one world. You should be glad! This is like a vacation for you, a change of pace from the usual thing you've been doing." He raised an eyebrow." You are tired of searching, correct?"

Cloud sighed loudly, his eyes glancing at the ceiling as if cursing whatever deity existed for his fate. It was true; he was tired of wandering through world after world and fighting the hordes of monsters in them. Tired of the nights he couldn't sleep because he had to fend off an entire horde of them; tired of being tired at every waking moment of every day. Maybe it was better for him to do this-teach orphans for a year. Who knows, maybe he could still complete his quest. It was like a vacation, right?

"From that look in your eyes, I say that we have a deal, correct?"

Cloud shrugged." When do I start?"

* * *

 **Some background information is in order; I like to do it with some of my new stories as you are given a little bit more insight on to why I ever wrote it in the first place. I read this fanfiction, I forgot what the name was, but it belonged to the One Punch Man series. I think I found it on archive of our own, but I don't rightly remember what I wore last week as well as this. Anyway, it involved much of the same plot I plan for this one-a school for beloved characters with a hand-picked adult character for the job. I thought of Cloud due to his melancholic attitude in the series, and because I just thought he'd make a good character to use for the plot. So yeah. What you can expect from this fanfic is that many of the characters will be younger and have some sort of trait that defines them from the rest. It's mainly based on the traits they poessess in the series and some of the events. I won't spoil anything.**

 **Now, comes the update progression. I will try to update at least once a month-give or take a few drafts of how I want the story to play out. The next update should shortly follow this one, but I hold no promises. My writer's block is starting to become like a dragon in heat. It may change depending on how popular this becomes. The first three are like trial run and hopefully things don't get too crazy.**

 **In any case, Nstorm signing off and keep up if you're interested. That should be my catchphrase. That's gonna be my catchphrase. Haveagoodone!**


	2. Day Zero: Kids and Friends

Eraqus' office was in the front being the first large, rectangular, maple brown door you encountered. From there, the rooms were along a large rectangle that opened at the back through equally maple brown, double doors. That was where the kitchen and dining room was. At least, that's what Cloud was told as they took a left down the hallway, turning the corner and coming to a door that was painted white. On each side of the door were two large, gray, humanoid, marble statues that had a very surprised look on them. Almost as if they accidently walked into Medusas' lair and she quickly gazed at them, freezing their fates forever. They were as tall as Cloud's hip and he couldn't help but stare at them, almost waiting for them to come to life.

"Don't mind them," assured Eraqus, brushing them off with a scoff and a hand wave." They're her guardians."

Eraqus took a very pitiful moment to look for any trace of amusement in Cloud's face, but all he got was the same look, so he turned his attention back to them, patting the left one's head.

"I'm afraid I forgot their names. You'll have to ask her when she comes back."

"Where is she?" asked Cloud then took a moment to think." Where are they?"

"They're on a field trip to a neighboring world….Destiny Island, or something like that. They've been complaining to our volunteer that none of them-except three of them-had been to a beach before. So, he decided to take them in a rather convenient manner. They all should be back here by midnight."

"Why couldn't-"

"He's only temporary and I wish to repay him for this by getting a new teacher for the kids. He didn't have to stay-as if it isn't obvious already."

They looked at the each other, an awkward moment filling the air as Cloud walked around the right statue and turned the doorknob. He turned to Eraqus, a look mixed with annoyance and caution.

"There won't be any confetti coming out at me, right?"

"None that I am aware of."

Cloud shrugged before opening the door, the smell of roses and freshly coated paint invading his nostrils like a Mongolian army. The room was very expansive despite its outside appearance and cluttered with a thousand canvas'-some painted on, some empty and some having unfinished or abandoned works. There was a queen sized bed covered to the brim with all sorts of stuffed animals-whales, dolphins, elephants-and paint stained smocks and blankets on the left side. On the right side, the canvas', empty paint jars, filled paint jars, half-filled paint jars and virtually every artistic instrument Cloud could recognize threatened to spill onto the left half. The right side was dirtier than the left with paint splattered here and there on the floors and the walls. For some reason, there was a clear bottle with a set of wilted roses in it standing in the middle of the floor. It was as if it was a divider for the war on cleanliness and comfort.

"Namine is a bit of an artist," remarked Eraqus, eager to break the silence." When I first found out that she could paint and such, I immediately set out to buy as many art supplies as I could find. Then, I deciding to share her artwork with the world, so I entered her into many art contests."

"I take it she wins every time?" questioned Cloud.

Eraqus shrugged." More or less. All of the prize money goes toward getting her better equipment and upkeep. She has a habit of going through everything within a week or so. It's made her a kind of hermit among the kids-not that it really matters anyway. She's terribly scared of everything."

"Pantophobic?"

Eraqus was suddenly taken aback." Yes, that is correct? Might I ask how you know that?"

"Lucky guess."

"Anyway, that's basically all I need to tell you about her. Now come, let us go upstairs where most of the other kids stay."

* * *

The upstairs was very different from the downstairs as it was just one long hallway and the stairs were in the middle of it all. A little strange and boring, but Cloud wasn't one to talk-his own home wasn't any better. They walked to the right and to the end of the hallway coming up to a door with a bronze, rectangular name tag. Inscribed in big print were the words _ROXAS' ROOM-KEEP OW!_ This made Cloud raise an eyebrow.

"He ran out of room a little too late and his friend slapped him for the comment he made at them," explained Eraqus, smirking." Roxas is a little of a smart Alec, so be careful around him. Especially when Riku edges him on. Anyway, open the door at your own peril. Roxas has a security measure installed whenever he's away."

Following his advice, and his movements, Cloud switched sides with Eraques and stood to the side before opening the door. A giant ham flew out from the inside of the room before vanishing in a puff of smoke. Eraqus shook his head.

"That Roxas. Always with the jokes," muttered Eraqus, shaking his head before grinning like an idiot at Cloud." Talk about….a smoked ham."

The Man began to guffaw at his own joke, causing Cloud to roll his eyes as he peered behind his head through the door. It was a typical boy's room, dirty clothes scattered here and there with a messy bed on the right side and an equally messy closet on the other. Clothes oozed out of it like puss out of an open wound. There were dried crusts of pizza sprinkled on top of the clothes and there were at least a couple bugs crawling among the pile of clothes in the middle of the floor. Cloud stared at it for about ten seconds before closing the door.

Cloud turned to the door on the left side of Roxas' room and gazed at the name tag that read: _Kairi's Room_ before slowly opening the door. He quickly had to clear his throat as the smell of rose scented perfume covered his mouth with its hand. The room was neater than the one that he had the pleasure of looking into; he smiled at the bed on the right side with its pretty pink blankets neatly made with two stuffed cats sitting in the middle of it. It was like they were locked in an eternal tea party without their mistress. Two book shelves neatly filled to the brim with books were on the other side, on both sides of the closed closet that was painted pink. There was a chest across from where the door was and in the middle of the floor was a small, plastic tea table with a pink cloth draped over it. On top of the cloth sat a vase of shiny roses that seemed to complete the almost princess-like look of the entire room.

"This is Kairi's room," translated Eraqus, gazing over Cloud's shoulders." She's the middle girl of our three females and is a little of a stereotypical girl. Despite that, she embraces activities with Sora and Riku as if she's one of the guys. Quite interesting."

They both turned their attention to the door across from the one they were gazing into, and Cloud marveled at teh painted words that were splattered on it. They read: _No.I, Xion the Magnificent._

"This is Xion's room and she sometimes refers to herself as the greatest of the six kids whenever somebody new comes around. She's a little below average compared to everyone else, but as they say: whatever helps your ego."

Xion's room was a mixture of both neatness and messiness in some aspects except her bed. The walls were painted black and seemed to house an inner fire that Cloud couldn't explain. There were two key blades leaned against her bed on the left side, a chest that was opened directly across from the wall the front door was on that was filled with clothes forcibly stuffed into it. As for the closet, it was halfway opened and it seemed to have undergone a brief avalanche as a mountain of clothes was standing in the entry way of it. All in all, it was a little plainer than the other two, but had its own style.

"Xion's more of a tomboy than Kairi is as she hangs out with Roxas, who is the oldest of the three boys. Every now and then, the two of us spar together as he is the only one I feel comfortable enough to battle, but we sometimes add Xion in. Her fighting style is the same as Sora's, so it's very interesting watching the two work together. Now, if you'll follow me, we shall go to the last room on our tour."

They walked to the lone door on the other side of the hallway, a red and blue door with a bronze name tag that read: _Sora and Silver Surfer's Room_ and Cloud narrowed his eyes as he read it a second time.

"Silver Surfer refers to Riku and not the person you are thinking of," replied Eraqus." The two of them are the best of friends and it shows through the name Riku's earned. Riku knows how to surf fairly well."

Cloud opened the door and was amazed at how clean it was. At least, the right side was; the other side fell into the same void that Roxas' room was in. While the bed on one side was neat like Kairi's and everything in an organized fashion, the other was like a tornado and earthquake hit it at the same time. The bed was sloppily made and covered in clothes and there was what appeared to be a deer head by the side of it. What made this room different was that there were two dressers placed together against the wall across from where the door was. Along with the white tape that cut the room in half.

"Riku is like a bigger brother to Sora and it also shows from the way they act. More so how their room is the exact opposite of how they are. Sora keeps his side clean while Riku has trouble with his. Strange, but there's not much one can do about it. Now, allow me to show you to your room."

* * *

Cloud forgot what Eraqus said to him or what he himself did, but he did remember that he crawled into bed and quickly fell asleep. What he did remember was the sound of a door opening then closing and somebody calling his name. When he opened his eyes, a man with short, thick black spikes that framed into bangs from his face like overgrown weeds was standing over him. His eyes were a bright blue that was filled to the brim with excitement. He wore a SOLDIER uniform with two silver pauldrons, black gloves, a brown guard over his abdomen and blue pants and turtle neck that was significantly brighter than his usual clothing. He was smiling at Cloud with a familiar warm smile that caused the blonde to rub his eyes.

"I must be dreaming," muttered Cloud, sitting up in his bed.

"So am I!" exclaimed The Man, chuckling loudly." Never thought I'd run into YOU here out of all people." The Man thought about it for a minute." Maybe Tifa, but that's beside the point."

"But I thought that you-" began Cloud.

"I did too, but a little after you left, I was surrounded in a bright light. At first, I thought I was going to heaven, so I just closed my eyes and enjoyed the ride. Then I came to on the same bed you're sleeping on. Eraqus explained that I was selected as a sub for the kids here, since they didn't have a teacher anymore. So, yeah, that's about the gist of how I'm here."

Cloud opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out causing The Man to shake his head in disbelief. He walked over to Cloud and grabbed his wrist.

"I. Am. Real. Cloud. Now quit staring! You're making me uncomfortable, almost as if you wished I was dead."

Cloud turned a light shade of red." Sorry, Zack, it's just that-"

BOOM!

"ROXAS YOU JERK! THAT WAS MY FAVORITE PAIR OF JEANS!"

"IT'S NOT MY FAULT! READ THE SIGN: NO GIRLS ALLOWED AND ALL THAT ENTER WILL BE GUNNED DOWN BY GRAVY!"

"YOU'RE SO ANNOYING!"

"I TRY TO, BABE, I TRY TO!"

Zack sighed loudly, shaking his head." Hold that thought."

And with that, he ran out the door, leaving Cloud to himself.

This is going to be a long year…. Thought Cloud as he turned over in his sleep.

PROGRESS UNTIL CLOUD'S LEAVE: THREE HUNDRED AND SIXTY-FIVE DAYS

* * *

 **Anyway, hoped you enjoyed this chapter and don't forget to review and all that jazz! It'll help me make the story a little better. The next update should be in a month and after that my noted will finally end! Nstorm signing off and haveagoodone!**


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